Sherry gets trendy

Sherry gets trendy

By Amber Rolt on 25/09/14 10:00 AM

The UK’s first Great Sherry Festival will take place in October, it was announced at the Great Sherry Tasting event in London earlier this week.

Independent wine merchants have been invited to take part, and the event will chime a similar tone to the tasting hosted on September 15. The host, the Consejo Regulador of the Denominations of Origin (CRDO) Jerez, saw some 250 trade professionals taste their way through a host of Sherries and take part in a series of masterclasses designed to drive Sherry sales in the UK.

Sherry sales in the UK are surging, and a record number of British companies are now importing the unique wine from Jerez in Spain, where it is made. It is also attracting a new and younger audience. Until recently, drinking Sherry was deemed only for the over 65s, but it has undergone a renaissance over the past decade and is now seen as a ‘trendy’ drink amongst youth.

According to Marks and Spencer, last year Sherry sales increased by 33 percent, with the majority of customers being under 45. Now bars in East London are serving it, when only a decade ago four out of ten bottles were bought by those aged 65 and over.

In light of this recent surge in popularity, the festival will aim to educate Sherry fans and merchants alike of the importance of Sherry and its future in the UK market.

The Great Sherry Festival will take place from Friday October 17 to November 2. Wine merchants and consumers can register online on the official website, and can take part in special events and tastings throughout the weekend.

There will also be a competition for participating merchants to select from a range of supporting POS material, and the most successful campaigns will win a trip to Jerez in Spain at the beginning of next year.